Traci Bunkers is a passionate and quirky self-employed mixed-media and journal artist living in Lawrence, Kansas. “I love rusty things, glitter glue, old books to cut up and cheap cameras. I'm smiling when my hands are dirty with paint or when I've altered a camera or something to use as a printing tool. It means I'm doing what I love—making art and doing things with my hands. Lucky for me, I do what I love for a living.” Even though the DIY and repurposing life styles are now in vogue, for this self-proclaimed love child of MacGyver, reusing and repurposing have always been her way of life as a creative way to problem solve and make ends meet. Through her one-woman business Bonkers Handmade Originals, she sells her nifty creations such as hand-dyed spinning fibers and yarns, original rubber stamps, handmade books, knits and original artwork. She also creates an artzine called Tub Legs, designs knitwear, and is a knitting, spinning, and crochet technical editor. She has been teaching workshops across the US since the early 90s and her visual journal pages, artwork, and knit designs have been published in numerous books and magazines. To learn more about her work, visit her web site at www.TraciBunkers.com.

"Step by step, the reader is brought to art journaling in a method that makes even a novice want to pick up a paint brush and begin making art that expresses your soul."—Diana Gonzalez, Brooklyn Crafting Examiner

"Back when I was the managing editor of Art Journaling, I remember when Traci Bunkers' journals arrived on my desk. I spent hours pouring through them, wondering to myself, 'How does she do this?' With Traci’s new book, The Art Journal Workshop, you get to see exactly how."—Christine Olivarez, Somerset Studio

Many people want to express themselves through visual journaling, but are stuck or intimidated with how to get started, what to write, or how to move beyond gluing down a few images or putting some paint on the paper.

With beautiful illustrations, The Art Journal Workshop breaks down the entire working process of journaling with step-by-step photos and instructions from start to finish. You'll learn how to use different media such as paint, photographs, and collage, while following journaling prompts and exercises to help you dig deeper and enrich the journaling process and experience. Traci Bunkers discusses the benefits of visual journaling, and walks you through battling a creative funk when you're feeling down or uninspired.

Additionally, The Art Journal Workshop comes with a DVD-ROM to play on yor PC or Mac which shows the author creating six visual journal pages from the book, start to finish, through time-lapse video clips. This visual guide enhances the information in the book, showing her work progress in a way that goes beyond what can be captured in still photographs or through text.

The Artist Journal Workshop, Bunkers, Tracie (Author) May 2011. 128 p. Quayside/Quarry, paperback, $24.99. (9781592536849). 745.593.

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